A failing Equilibrium
by ncisgirl101
Summary: When Tony’s best friend is found murdered on a naval base, All Tony wants is payback. But what if all evidence points to the one person who he can’t destroy - someone he can’t kill. Tiva. Story much better than summary, please give it a chance. Enjoy.
1. Of Fallen Friends

When Tony's best friend is found murdered on a naval base, All Tony wants is payback. But what if all evidence points to the one person who he can't destroy - someone he can't kill. I don't want to give away too much in this recap so please read and find out more as the story grows -- I promise the story is better than this recap. Tiva.

**Hello all! It's good to be back! I've missed you all so much. **

**I promise more fics will be soon - I've begun writing about six and this is the one that I've not yet hit a writers block with. **

**Look, can you all please give it a chance? **

**Love you for opening this! **

**Xox. Mel.**

**Chapter one: This one should be easy**

The bowling ball rolled down the lane at high speed, hitting down every pin in it's path. Ziva laughed loudly and returned to her seat, brushing past Tony on the way.

"Good shot, yes?" the smiled in a very 'in your face' way.

Tony glanced down to his partner and scowled. "I hate bowling." he murmured to himself but still loud enough for Ziva to hear and roll her eyes.

"Got a problem there, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked, walking toward his senior field agent.

"No boss. Just wondering if this is really necessary." he answered, realising he was digging a hole by questioning the boss. He didn't bother turning to face Gibbs, sensing the slap on the back of his head was inevitable.

"Officer David." Gibbs smiled lightly without much humour and turned to Ziva, "would you like to explain to agent DiNozzo why we are here?"

Ziva smiled and turned to Tony "I think the point of this bowling exercise is to get better co ordinates. Hand and eye, yes?" she turned to Gibbs, looking for confirmation of her English.

"Very good, Ziva."

Ziva turned to Tony and smiled as Gibbs walked away, hitting the back of Tony's head in one swift movement as he went to collect his bowling ball to take the next shot.

"I knew that." Tony called, loud enough for Gibbs to hear.

Gibbs' cell phone went off then, ringing twice before he flipped the top up "Gibbs." he answered simply.

McGee, Tony and Ziva waited patiently for Gibbs to get off the phone.

"We're on our way." He finally said, closing the phone as he usually did - without saying good bye.

"What have we got, Boss?" Tony asked, already removing his bowling shoes.

"The body of a Navy Lieutenant has been recovered on the base college. DiNozzo, call Ducky and collect the truck. Ziva go with him. Me and McGee will meet you there."

"On it, boss." Tony said, already out of the bowling area and on his way to the car.

Ziva quickly changed her shoes and stood up, ready to follow Tony to the car.

"Ziva." Gibbs called, wiggling his finger, indicating for her to come closer. "The man murdered had your card in his pocket. Sean Williams, you know him?"

Ziva stood, shocked. Sean was one of Tony's best friends from college, and also the man she had been dating for the past few weeks. She had met him one night when visiting Tony.

"Yes." she answered, pulling herself out of her thinking spiral. "He is one of Tony's friends."

Gibbs thought for a minute. "Okay."

"Do you want me to tell him?" she asked, concerned for her partner. She knew how close him and Sean were. Tony constantly talked about the fraternal bond.

"That's up to you, Ziva."

Ziva nodded then left the bowling alley. Not looking forward to what she was going to tell Tony.

She met up with him outside, he was standing at the driver's side door impatiently.

"Finally David. What did the boss-man want?" he asked, his eyes not leaving hers, calculating how he was going to stop her from driving as she walked to where he was standing.

"I am driving." she announced, not in the joking or flirtatious way she usually did but in a new, somewhat sad and final way.

"See I don't think you did because I shot-gunned it and last time I checked --"

"Give me the keys, Tony." she said softly, staring at the ground.

Tony handed her the keys, his eyes confused. The Ziva he left in the bowling alley was just as fun-loving and annoying as usual but she had transformed in an instant. Something was up.

"You okay, Ziva?" he asked as he got into the passenger side of the car, his eyes not leaving her distant face.

"The man murdered is ah." she paused, instantly wishing she hadn't said anything. She swallowed and tried again. "Tony. It was Sean. The man that was killed."

Tony's face fell and he was silent for a minute. Eventually he broke the silence with a laugh. "You're joking, right?" he asked, a hint of desperation in his voice. Sean was his best friend, his frat brother.

"I am sorry, Tony." she broke away from his gaze and started the truck, feeling terrible for the news she had broken on her partner.

They drove in silence for 10 minutes, approaching the NCIS building. Tony turned to Ziva, his eyes were watery but not a single tear had fallen from them.

"Are you okay, Ziva?" Tony asked, genuine concern for her flooded his tone, causing her to momentarily second guess who was actually talking. He knew they had been seeing each other.

Ziva inhaled deeply, "I am fine."

And she was fine. She'd seen too many deaths of too many loved ones to let this affect her, of course she couldn't let Tony know that; he and Sean were closer than brothers. Perhaps it was that fraternal bond. "How are you?"

"Ah. I'm alright." he answered very un convincingly. "I mean, I'll be alright... Later."

Ziva pulled the car into a space outside the building and un fastened her seatbelt. She had no idea how to handle a depressed DiNozzo. The last time he looked like this was when Jeanne had left him. and Ziva had not dealt well with that at all. After that whole affair, she had learned that interrogation was clearly not the way to handle these situations. She quickly scanned through the ways that different co-workers helped calm situations.

The two looked into each other's eyes for a minute, though nothing was said, Tony felt comforted from Ziva's expression, he could tell she cared.

"Would you like. Ah." she paused, struggling with what she was about to say. "Would you like me to hug you?" Ziva asked, clearly un comfortable with the idea but Abby's form of comfort seemed the best of a bad lot.

Tony shrugged and smiled, even through the sadness he still found pleasure in Ziva's obvious discomfort in hugging someone.

Slowly, she leaned forward, with her arms out - uncomfortable with the concept - and hugged Tony. He hugged her back and they stayed that way for a few minutes.

"What happens next?" Ziva asked.

Tony laughed and released her. "Next we get Ducky and investigate a crime scene."

XXX

The crime scene was same as usual, they sketched, took photos and statements of witnesses but something was different. There was an almost tangible sorrow in the air.

"You don't have to work this case." Gibbs reminded Tony, he had a feeling Tony would let his personal feelings stand in the way of the investigation.

"What?" Tony questioned "And miss killing the bastard who stabbed him?"

Gibbs smiled weakly and walked away to collect some information from Ducky. Patting Tony on the back before he left.

"You got a T.O.D yet, Duck?" he asked, marching across the crime scene.

Ducky looked up from the body and into Gibbs' eyes, squinting in the mid-day sun "He's been dead roughly 12 hours. It would be my assumption that the cause of death is these stab wounds, they are single punctures, most likely from a combat knife or throwing knife. But I can't be sure until we get him back."

Gibbs shrugged and took a sip from his coffee. "Works for me."

"How's Anthony coping?" Ducky called back to Gibbs before he had a chance to march off again.

"The same way every agent copes. He's waiting for a chance to kill the bastard."

He left Ducky and walked to join Ziva and McGee who were sketching and measuring.

"Ziva." he said, brushing past her. "With me."

Without question or hesitation, Ziva moved quickly to join her boss, standing by the truck. Well out of earshot of any other team members.

"Why does he have your card on him, Ziva?" he asked seriously.

Ziva looked away from Gibbs' stare. "Tony and I interviewed him last week for the Director. I gave him my card."

He stared at her. Convinced she was not telling him the whole truth. "I want you and DiNozzo to find me that murder weapon"

Without another word, Ziva turned and left Gibbs standing at the truck, wondering what one of his best agents was keeping from him.

XXX

"Have you got me a definite cause yet, Duck?" Gibbs asked, walking into Autopsy holding a cup of coffee in one hand and a Caff-Pow! In the other.

"As a matter of fact, Jethro. I do." Ducky answered, looking up from the body and placing his scalpel on the table next to the body. "He was stabbed three times, one time of which was fatal. The knife went straight into his heart, piercing his aorta and killing him instantly."

Gibbs' eyes narrowed as he took a swig from his coffee cup.

"Of course; you were wondering if I found anything else." Ducky added, picking up his scalpel.

"I'm still wondering, Duck"

"Well. Notice the mild swelling in this area?" Ducky asked, indicating with his scalpel to the lieutenant's private area. "Well this is caused by the fluid rush men get during and for some time after penetration--"

"Our lieutenant was having sex before he was murdered." Gibbs said, already on his way to go see Abby.

"Actually, more like while he was murdered. Whoever he was having sex with was most likely the person who killed him and dumped him on the college base. I don't think he was one for safe relations. I've sent some samples to Abby, She get's the woman's DNA off that and presto! Justice prevails! This one may be simple."

"That's good work, Ducky."

XXX

Abby sat at her mas Spec with her eyes closed and her palms hovering over the top of the machine.

"What are you doing?" Gibbs whispered in her ear, causing her to jump.

"Gibbs. You are getting quieter and sneakier." she stated, grabbing the caf-pow! From his hand. "I'm using the art of healing energy - Reiki- to speed things up." she smiled, taking a sip from her drink.

Gibbs rolled his eyes slightly. "Is it working?"

Abby smiled and jumped up off her chair. "Well hopefully it will. I've just put in the samples Ducky sent to me and the results should some through soon-ish."

"Ish', Abby?" Gibbs asked, clearly unhappy with this fact.

"Well these things take time, Gibbs and--" She was cut off by the beeping of her computer and a huge grin spread across her face "Ah-ha! The Reiki worked! Here is your black widow." she smiled, double clicking on the mouse.

Gibbs smiled lightly at Abby but the face that popped up wiped the smile clean off his face.

On the computer flashed up a picture of Ziva David. Along with her DNA information and a copy of her ID.

"Oh God, not again." Abby whispered under her breath.

XXX

**Hey all!! I hope you liked it. Suggestions of what should happen next would be amazing and I would love you all forever. **

**Have an awesome Easter break - I may not update over the break but once we return I swear I'll be quick. **

**Have an awesome Easter, everyone! **

**Xox. Mel.**


	2. Of Trusted Enemies

**WARNING: The end of this chapter makes no sense, it will eventually, just bear with me. **

**Okay -- and we're BACK from our respective Easter breaks! I hope everyone had a fantastic Easter and that the Easter Bunny was with you all (Or Bilby in Australia, as some of you have pointed out :P)**

**I don't think word can describe how much the reviews mean to me! Thankyou so much for giving this a chance and I hope you all enjoy it. **

**Anyway, on with it, I guess. **

**Xox. Mel.**

**Chapter two: Of trusted enemies.**

Abby and Gibbs stared at the computer screen. Abby's eyes concerned and Gibbs' hard and narrow.

Finally Abby snapped out of the silence, returning to her mass spectrometer to attempt the analysis again.

"It's alright, Gibbs. It's not gonna happen again, It's just a dodgy sample, it got mixed in with something else and duplicated Ziva's DNA -- don't tell me it can't happen, it can. She didn't do anything and no ones gonna know what just happened. Ziva's going to be fine." Abby knew she was getting hysterical. She moved closer to Gibbs and fell into his arms, wrapping her's around his waist.

"She didn't do anything, Gibbs." she whispered into his shirt.

"I know, Abby, I know." he said quietly into her ear, the whole while not taking his eyes off the result on the huge screen. There was something Ziva wasn't telling him, his gut knew that much and he was going to get it out of her before any other agency found out about this.

XXX

"Hey Tony," Ziva glanced up from her desk, smiling flirtatiously "I am free on Saturday if you feel like kicking the lanes."

Tony looked up through his lashed and smiled fakely. "Hit. Not Kick, you want to hit the lanes and no, Ziva, I have better things to do then bowl on a Saturday night."

"Such as?" she asked, rising and walking slowly to his desk, resting her arms on it.

"Such as being hit by a truck." he smiled, revealing all of his teeth and lifted his phone to his ear. "Yeah I'm still here. Okay great, thanks Ricky." His face dropped as the person on the other end of the line spoke "Yeah. He was a great guy."

He placed down the phone slowly and everything came back into reality. Tony's eyes dropped and he moved to his computer, trying to find something to make him busy. Everyone had been pulled back into the reality that Tony's best friend was dead and a new solemnity was sent around the bullpen.

Ziva moved closer in to Tony until his head snapped up, their eyes meeting.

"You can talk to me if you need to. You know that." she said quietly, her hold on his eyes becoming more intense by the second.

A million responses went through Tony's mind at that point. He was about to tell her he was fine but decided against it. She could see right through him and it would just be another Jeanne disaster that ended in him having to apologise for her chasing him into the men's bathroom.

"I know, Ziva. I know." he said finally, breaking the eye contact by looking down.

Ziva turned around and walked back to her desk, hearing the 'ding' from the elevator as she sat down.

Gibbs marched into the bullpen and stopped at Ziva's desk, leaning in until his face was right in front of hers.

This caught McGee and Tony's attentions and they snapped their heads up, Tony leant forward in hopes of hearing something - anything that would link anyone to Sean's murder.

"Ziva. With me." Gibbs said in a tone no louder than a whisper. Ziva knew what this would be about, she would have to tell Gibbs about her and Sean dating which was now a huge deal because she never mentioned it before. Ziva could lie to anyone, she knew where to look and what to say but no one - not even her father - could lie to Gibbs' gut.

She jumped up and walked after her boss, quickening to keep pace with his fast walk. The two entered the elevator together and the doors closed, moving down without stopping. Ziva wasn't expecting this. She was waiting for him to lean over and flick the stop switch but that moment never came - it kept moving down until it was on the level of Abby's lab.

Gibbs stepped out and Ziva took a second to fall into stride with him, slightly confused as to what this was leading to.

The pair walked into the lab and a surprised Abby jumped up, running over to Gibbs.

"It's not finished yet Gibbs, I ran it a second time but that was no good so now I am being specially careful this time and I'm using two samples instead of one, I figured then it would be right and the chances of anything going wrong were less because what are the odds of two samples being contaminated in one shot?"

"It's okay Abby." Gibbs whispered, realising that both now had no hope left in proving Ziva didn't kill this man through forensics. "I just need to talk to Ziva alone... Please?"

Ziva stood up straight, something was definitely not right. Gibbs just said please. Maybe this was about something else. Something more serious than just a physical relationship. Ziva internally kicked herself, she didn't know why she didn't just tell him in the first place - he was just a boyfriend, it's not like she murdered him or anything.

Abby nodded and left the lab, leaving Gibbs and Ziva face to face.

"What is all this about, Gibbs?" Ziva asked, though she wouldn't willingly admit it, she was worried about what he was going to say

"What aren't you telling me, Ziva?" Gibbs asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.

Ziva thought for a second and kicked herself for not mentioning it earlier, he was just a boyfriend - why did she have to keep it a secret?

"Sean was more than just Tony's friend. He was my boyfriend. I did not mention anything earlier but I did not think it would pertain heavily to the case."

"Why didn't you tell me, Ziva?" he asked, wondering if this was good news or bad news.

"I do not know. I knew I would have to be interviewed and I did not want to be kicked off the case. I mean, he was Tony's best friend so he is too sad to do his job properly and then I would just leave you and McGee. I did not want to be a suspect." This was the best reason Ziva could give. Though she didn't have one, this reason seemed to sit best with her.

Beeping came from Abby's computer just as she exited the elevator, running into her lab. The three stood in silence as she double clicked. The results again showing Ziva's picture, along with her DNA information.

Gibbs turned to Ziva's shocked face, his eyes worried behind the hardness. "I don't think you're gonna dodge that bullet, David."

XXX

The elevator dinged loudly and Gibbs stepped out, Ziva no where to be seen.

"Uh, Boss. Where's Ziva?" McGee asked from his desk. Gibbs walked past him without saying a word, he picked his glasses off his desk and walked back from where he came from, stopping briefly at Tony's desk.

"With me."

McGee and Tony stared at their boss for a second before everything swung into action. Tony jumped up and followed his boss and McGee grabbed his phone, dialling for Abby's lab.

"What's going on, Boss? Where's Ziva?" Tony asked as the elevator doors closed. Usually he would never ask the boss questions and just believe that all would eventually be revealed; but this case was different. It was his best friend and he deserved to know.

Gibbs said nothing and the doors to level four opened, surprising Tony when he stepped out.

"What are we doing here?" he asked as he fell in suit with his Boss, entering an abandoned conference room. Ziva sat at one of the chairs, spinning her knife along the table. She jumped up when Tony and Gibbs entered, putting her knife away.

"Sit." Gibbs commanded both of them, taking a seat at the end of the conference table.

"Gibbs. I swear I did nothing" Ziva piped up, shooting glances to both Tony and Gibbs, a hint of desperation behind her features.

"What?" Tony asked, jumping up "Ziva?"

Gibbs shot glances at his two agents, his expression telling them both to sit and calm down.

A thick silence fell over the conference room as they waited for Gibbs to begin.

"I did not do anything, Gibbs." Ziva whispered.

"I know that." he said, shocking her.

"Then why-" Tony chipped in, wondering what was going on.

"Ziva. Your DNA was pulled from the victim and you have no alibi. Soon another agency will be involved in this and they are not going to believe you unless we get some evidence."

"What is going on?" Tony piped up, though he already had a fair idea.

"There's evidence… Forensics. That point toward me." She explained flatly, staring at the table in front of her.

"but you wouldn't…" Tony trailed off into a long silence "What kind of evidence?"

"Compelling evidence." Gibbs spoke strongly, clearly not wanting to give specifics.

Another silence fell over the room, this time it was Gibbs' cell phone that cut through it with it's plain ringing.

"Gibbs."

"Agent Gibbs." came the voice of Leon Vance, anger in his tone.

"Director." he responded, his tone more inconvenienced than angry.

"How is the investigation going? Have you found any leads on the Sean Williams case?" his voice was calmer now, with only a hint of anger, he had managed to contain himself.

Gibbs got up from the table and walked out of the room to have a private conversation. He knew. Gibbs knew he knew.

"What the hell are you doing, Ziva?" Tony asked as soon as the door clicked shut, his tone desperate.

"I will get out of this alone." she whispered "I do not need your help"

"But I can help you - you would do the same for me."

"Not if you asked me not to"

"That's crap, David - and you know it." Tony was angry now, his best friend had been murdered and his partner was refusing any help.

"Tony." She stared him dead in the eye "I have done nothing wrong. You know that I did not murder Sean. They will find the truth. Just… you don't need to do this to help me."

Tony stared into her eyes, not liking the determination that he found there. Finally, he broke the contact and relaxed back in the chair, burying his face in his hands - guilt relentlessly gnawing at his stomach.

Ziva stood up to comfort her partner when the door clicked open. The two looked up, expecting to see their Boss but were instead met by the cold, dark eyes of Leon Vance.

"Officer David." he noted, flanked by two tall agents. One, they recognised to be Agent Tobias Fornell of the FBI, and the other was an unknown man, more than likely he was also an FBI agent.

Vance stood at the doorway for a few seconds, taking in the two partners. The unknown agent behind him pulled out a pair of silver handcuffs, causing Vance to raise his hand in protest. "Are you going to come quietly?"

XXX

**Say what? **

**Okay, I understand that at the moment this makes ABSOLUTELY no sense but it's okay… All will be explained. The way I see it, NCIS is ALWAYS cryptic and us fans never bloody know what's going on… **

**I've re written the end of this chapter SO many times because I was not sure if it was too 'What the hell is this girl writing about?' but I figured that I would explain it in good time and so you all need not worry. **

**I promise it will make sense (And I have not forgotten about making Tony PISSED… all in good time).**

**Love you all! Hope you had an awesome EASTER!**

**Xox. Mel.**


	3. Of What we've got

**Hey all!!! **

**Thankyou SO much for the absolutely brilliant reviews you've left… They actually brighten my outlook considerably. **

**Shame that there's no new NCIS this week… it pains me to think about. **

**Okay - so without further stalling for time, here's the new chapter. **

**Chapter 3: Of what we've got**

**XXX**

"Dammit, Gibbs." Vance slammed his hand hard on his desk "You should have told me the second the results came in."

Gibbs stood in silence, waiting for the Director to finish his rant.

"This makes the agency look bad. The second the CIA get their hands on this, they'll have leverage over us. This is not the first time this has happened, either."

"Been reading that file again, Leon?" Gibbs smirked.

"This is not funny, Agent Gibbs. I don't know how the FBI found out about this, point is; they did." Vance stopped and took a deep breath, unsure of what to do next - he knew Gibbs, he knew that he would be all over the case until the end.

"You can't work this case. You know that. I would suspend you and your team to keep you away but I know better; you'd probably just work it from home."

Gibbs' smirk confirmed that hypothesis.

"What are you gonna do, Director?" emphasis on the final word.

"What do you suppose I do, Jethro?"

"You asking my Directing advice?" there was that smirk again

"No - I'm asking your Gibbs advice."

"Let me talk to her." he was serious now, his blue eyes cold.

"I can't allow that. That's between you and Fornell." He pondered for a second, moving around to take a seat at his desk. "Go home. Take your team. Get some rest. The FBI will want to speak to you all."

Gibbs nodded and headed for the door, pulling it open with controlled force.

"Gibbs." He stopped in the frame, not turning to face his superior. "You trust your agents with your life." This was a question, not a statement.

"She didn't do it, Leon." and with that, he was gone; leaving the Director to ponder how he was going to keep his agents away.

XXX

Tobias Fornell entered the interrogation room harshly, slamming the door behind him. He had done this before. Maybe too many times before.

He pulled the steel seat out and sat on it, flipping through a file in front of him.

"Officer Ziva David." he smiled with no humour "We've definitely been here before."

Ziva had nothing to say to that so she sat in silence.

Tobias sighed and decided it was best to take a direct approach.

"did you murder Petty Officer Sean Williams?"

"No."

"Were you in a sexual relationship with Petty Officer Sean Williams?"

Before she answered there was a change in her facial features, only a minute one but this did not go unnoticed by Fornell. "Yes."

Fornell smirked, he'd found his angle of attack. "How long were you this sexual relationship?"

"Only a few weeks." there it was again. That tiny change. Still, Fornell could not make out what it was.

"Where were you last night between 8 and 11 o'clock?"

"At home." Short. Sharp

"Any one to testify to that?"

"No." Again. It was only on her face for a millisecond but Fornell recognised it clear as day; it was shame.

The two sat in silence while Fornell put the facts together. Ziva was ashamed of the sexual relationship with Sean. Though she appeared to be telling the truth, she was ashamed that she was alone at her house on the night of the murder.

Tobias thought back to the leverage he'd used last time and all of a sudden it hit him like a bolt of lightning. Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo.

"Williams and DiNutso were best friends, were they not?"

"yes."

There - he had her.

XXX

Gibbs marched into Abby's lab to find Abby, McGee, Tony and Palmer crowded around the large plasma in the second half of the empty lab. The FBI tech crew had taken every single piece of evidence from the case.

Finally, he reached his agents.

"What are you doing?" he asked when he was directly behind them.

All four team members jumped and scrambled away. Abby faced Gibbs to block him from the screen while McGee dived at the keyboard to exit whatever they were watching.

"Stop McGee." Gibbs ordered. He froze mid-flight and slunk away from the keyboard. Gibbs pushed past his forensic scientist to see that they were watching Ziva's interrogation.

"Sorry, Gibbs." Abby muttered, offering her head for him to slap. Instead of hitting her, to everyone's surprise, he simply watched the interrogation.

XXX

"What did your partner think of you dating his best friend? You and DiNutso are very close."

"I do not know what he thought." she bore her eyes into his, making it clear that she did not like this line of questioning.

"You've worked together for near five years. I distinctly remember one occasion where you two completely crossed the line for an… undercover op?" he raised his eye brows.

Ziva's eyes narrowed slightly but she remained in her ambivalent façade.

"Though it does not pertain to this case, we were… faking it."

"But you are very close."

"We are partners."

"You trust each other?"

Ziva was getting sick of this line of questioning, what was he trying to achieve?

"Yes we do."

Silence.

Sinister. Dark. Awkward. Silence.

Fornell leaned forward and looked intently into Ziva's eyes.

"You're wondering what I'm thinking." This was not a question.

She did not reply, instead she lowered her gaze, bored with him.

"I'm thinking that you murdered Sean Williams… And this is what I think happened. A few weeks ago, you got sick and tired of the fact that Agent DiNutso would never love you so you go out with his best friend. He does not give you a proper response, no running to your door begging you to love him; so you take matters into your own hands to loose Williams…"

Ziva smirked.

"That does not explain why I killed him."

XXX

The team watched intently as Fornell leaned closer into Ziva, swapping theories about Tony.

"No, you're right, David. Maybe you DiNutso _did _come running to your door, begging you to love him. You sleep with your partner, realise that you've both done a terrible thing. One of you gets the guilts and tells Sean. He gets pissed next time you're together and you stab him… You dump the body and make a break for it."

Ziva's face faltered. Not a lot, not even a detectable amount but it did not go unnoticed by Fornell.

He smiled to himself and continued to press that matter.

"Gibbs?" Abby tapped her boss' shoulder, her voice worried. Gibbs turned around to see where Abby was pointing and found that Tony was gone.

"Dammit." he muttered under his breath, turning back to the monitor.

"Maybe you called out 'Tony' instead of 'Sean' and he got angry and tried to kill you do you beat him to it. Maybe he walked in on you and DiNutso together. Maybe someone took pictures and sent them to him--"

"You have no evidence of this." Ziva interrupted.

"We have your DNA. It was on Williams. You were obviously not smart enough to be safe."

"You have no proof that me and Tony were together." she stated

"I can prove beyond reasonable doubt."

Suddenly the door clicked open and Tony barged in. Both Fornell and Ziva stood up. Ziva shot Tony a deadly glance, telling him to back off.

"Ziva did not murder Sean." Tony stated flatly. "She was with me."

XXX

**Sorry if it's a little out of character… **

**Suggestions of what should happen next would bring me much joy as I want it to go longer than I've planned it to go. **

**Hope you all enjoyed it! I'll try to upload quicker but the holidays are just slipping away… And I should probably do some homework. **

**Loves you all!**

**Xox. Mel.**


	4. Of Friends and Lovers

**HI GANG! Just want to apologise for the slow updates, rest assured - ncisgirl101 has NEVER had a story without a 'complete' sign next to it so - even if it takes me years, I will finish this story… but it won't take me years, so don't loose any sleep. **

**Alright, so this chappy is a tiny bit confuzzling - I switch from present time to fifteen hours earlier VERY frequently so please don't be confused. I feel like a bi-atch pointing that out to you all but I really don't want anyone to be like 'what the?' so all 'fifteen hour earliers' are in italics. Again, sorry for pointing that out. **

**Okay, people. I have devastating news for anyone who has not already heard. POTENTIALLY ****VERY**** devastating news. **

**ALL SPOILERPHOBES LEAVE NOW - I'm not kidding. This is serious stuff here… **

**Question: Rumors are flying that Michael Weatherly won't be returning next season on NCIS. Please tell me that it is not true! -- Kristen****Ausiello: Michael Weatherly isn't the one you should be worried about. **

**Guys - I SO can't do this again… I can't live for over a month AGAIN thinking the Cote de Pablo is leaving… cause if Michael isn't what if Cote is? I can't deal with anyone leaving. I love them all - even Vance, that rat bastard - I just love him.**

**Anyway, sorry for that low - here's the next chapter:**

**XXX**

**Chapter four: Of friends and lovers**

_Fifteen hours earlier:_

_Tony sat on his sofa, watching the beer bottle that sat between his interlocked fingers more intently than necessary. This 'Ziva and Sean' thing had formed a knot in his stomach and he had no idea why. He was happy for his partner - he was. He was happy for his best friend, too. He just had this feeling in his stomach that erupted every time the thought crossed his mind. _

_He ran a hand through his hair and downed the rest of his beer. _

_Okay. So maybe he wasn't okay with the whole thing. But he couldn't say anything now, could he? What was he going to say? That he 'wasn't comfortable' with his best friend dating his partner… Why would that even matter - Kate used to date one of his frat brothers and it never got to him._

_Why should he want to ruin something that makes two people he cares for happy? It's not like he wanted Ziva for himself… _

_Oh who was he kidding? He wanted her. To what extent he was unsure but he knew he wanted her - from the second Sean asked his permission to ask her out he had not taken a single easy breath._

_He shook his head and looked at the clock, trying to decipher whether or not drinking alone past 8 o'clock was considered sad. _

_After a few minutes, he decided it was. That, however, did not stop him from retrieving another beer from his fridge. _

_The second he relaxed back into his sofa, there was a faint knock at his door. He furrowed his eyebrows together and got up, carefully placing his beer out of eye-shot. _

_He pulled his door open to reveal a very dazed Ziva David. Her face was expressionless and she had dark rings under her eyes. _

"_I do not know why I am here." She stated flatly. _

"_Didn't ask." he responded, stepping aside to allow her to enter his apartment. _

XXX

Suddenly the door clicked open and Tony barged in. Both Fornell and Ziva stood up. Ziva shot Tony a deadly glance, telling him to back off.

"Ziva couldn't have murdered Sean." Tony stated flatly. "She was with me."

"What?" McGee blurted out, unable to reel in his surprise

"What?!" Abby smiled hugely; half for the fact that Ziva had an alibi, the other half for the two finally getting their act together.

"What?" Fornell asked, exchanging looks between Tony and Ziva. "You did not think to mention this earlier, David?"

Ziva did not reply, instead she shot daggers at Tony. She had it under control - he was going to get them both fired.

Fornell shook his head and paced away from the desk, muttering something about 'NCIS' and 'Every time'. He hit the one-way glass once with his palm.

"Agent Mazzone, get me Special Agent Gibbs… Now!" he ordered before turning back to Ziva and Tony

"Gonna try and get us fired, Fornell?" Tony asked bluntly; a joke somewhere in his features. Even though this was a serious situation, he couldn't help but screw with the man.

"Might succeed this time, DiNutso" he smiled back bitterly.

Tony nodded and turned toward Ziva, trying to measure her expression. She met his glance, the anger once there still burning in her eyes. He could see that she didn't understand that he was doing this to protect her.

"How do I know you are not making this up to cover her ass?" Deadpan. Fornell was pissed.

Tony laughed through his nose, a smirk forming on his lips. He walked a few paces, closing the gap between the FBI agent and himself until his lips were mere inches from his ear.

"You need evidence, look in my bin."

The door burst open and Gibbs walked in. His expression unreadable. No words were exchanged in that room. Tony and Ziva waited for the impending doom that would fall upon them, both assuming the worst; however nothing but silence filled the room.

Fornell exchanged a glance with Gibbs and before anything could occur, the two were gone, leaving only Tony and Ziva to wait in that same thick, ugly silence.

XXX

_Tony stared intently at Ziva. Ziva stared intently at the floor. Both too scared to say anything for fear of getting hurt. _

_Finally, Ziva looked up, her eyes meeting Tony's for the first time since she'd begun dating Sean. He almost looked away - for a second he was convinced she could see what he was thinking. _

"_I should go." she finally spoke - her voice husky. _

_Tony straightened up and walked to his partner and nodded, their faces inches apart. _

_Slowly he closed the gap between them until mere millimetres remained._

_His hand moved to the side of her cheek and he brushed the tips of his fingers lightly against it, causing Goosebumps to form on the back of her neck. _

XXX

Gibbs hit the switch on his and Fornell's makeshift office with more force than usual. The two waited patiently as the elevator shuddered to a stop and the emergency lights went into effect.

"Did you know about this, Gibbs?" Fornell was met by a pair of unimpressed blue eyes. "Yeah, didn't think so." he said the second bit more to himself then to his friend.

"I guess that gives her an alibi." Gibbs noted blankly.

"We still need to get their statements… As well as…" he faded out as Gibbs' eyes met his harshly.

"Other things…?"

"I'll go with that." Fornell could not help but smirk at the awkward situation Tony had put upon the entire team. "Looks like 'Team-Gibbs' has wiggled away again."

"Well, Tobias - it's always well worth it if it pisses you off." Gibbs' smirk was short lived. "You don't believe DiNozzo." Half a question - half a statement.

XXX

"_I understand." He whispered, his breath brushing against her lips. _

_She stood, that expressionless façade quavering. She was torn between running out of the room or closing the millimetres between them. _

"_It's your call, David." _

XXX

"I know that you trust your people, Gibbs but I need to know that he's not just covering her ass." He knew that forensics and testimonies were more than enough but he needed to clear this with his friend first - if Gibbs said there was no way; then there was no way.

XXX

_Slowly, yet still too quickly to keep up with, she leant up and closed the gap between them._

XXX

Gibbs did not respond, his expression was inscrutable. Fornell moved closer to his trusted peer.

"Jethro… Is there any way that Agent DiNozzo could make this up to cover for his partner?"

XXX

_The first kiss, delicate. _

XXX

"Dammit, Gibbs." Fornell slammed his fist against the side of the elevator.

XXX

_The second, passionate. _

XXX

Finally Gibbs looked up from his trance and met Fornell's steel gray eyes.

"He's telling the truth. Get your statements."

XXX

_The third, impregnable_

**XXX**

**Okay - maybe I went a tiny bit over board with the artsy commentary but it just worked for me. **

**I enjoy switching from past to present, it makes me smile. **

**Sorry for the slow updates, gang - won't bore you with the boring details. **

**Oh - and for all you who are worrying, I am getting the homework done :P**

**Anyway, I hope everyone has an AWESOME day… I have not stopped freaking out about the finale and now every time I think about future episodes, (SPOILERPHOBES, vamoose) I count the amount of times I could possibly see each character. **

**I can't do it again - I just can't. Last season when I heard someone was going to die I didn't actually breathe properly for the two-three months that led up to the big event. **

**Sound off on what you think about the spoilers (Or, of course… the chapter… but I'm more interested in what you think of the spoilers)**

**All suggestions are welcomed with open arms. **

**Love you guys. **

**Enjoy your weekends! **

**Xox. Mel.**


	5. Of What I want

**Hello all. Thanks for the awesome theories/reviews! They really calmed me down and totally made my day. **

**Just realised - I've been going this whole time with no disclaimer. I really hate disclaimers, I find them pointless and corny. Nonetheless;**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own NCIS - It belongs to the a-mazing Shane Brennan, DPB and Belisarius productions. I do not own it - I do not want to own it as I love it the way it is. I would, however love to work on the show.**

**There! Done. Now, this chapter is a bit OC because I was in a romantically sappy mood. I reeled it in as best I could. **

**Love you all. Enjoy**

**Xox. Mel**

**XXX**

**Chapter five: Of What I want.**

"Dammit, Ziva. Open up." Tony growled at the door, banging his fist against it. Harder with each second that past.

Finally the door clicked open to reveal a woman slightly resembling Ziva. It was her, of course, however dark rings encased her hollow eyes and her features were drained. The last time she'd looked like this was the undercover case where Hoffman had almost murdered her. He almost shuddered at the memory.

Ziva did not say anything, she simply stood aside to allow Tony to enter. He moved past her slowly, brushing gently against her as he entered her house. She waited longer than necessary to close the door softly.

"Shouldn't we talk about this?" Tony asked, trying to read Ziva's expression.

"There is nothing to talk about." she replied - looking straight into his usually warm brown eyes, finding nothing now but confusion and guilt.

"Ziva - putting aside the fact that Sean was almost family; we need to talk about what happened. Gibbs is probably going to have our asses so I would really like to have something to say to him."

"And who's fault is it that Gibbs found out? I thought we could work this out ourselves. You did not have to tell the whole building." Ziva snapped - her hollow eyes now consumed by fire.

"I was protecting you! I was telling the truth, Ziva." Tony was mad now - how could she not see what he was doing?

"I did not murder Sean, Tony - they would have seen that eventually. You did not need to get us fired." She knew she was being dramatic but it needed to be said. It was easier to blame him then to blame herself.

Tony stared at Ziva - wanting to shout what he was feeling at the top of his lungs. He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. Instead - something very rare happened. He let his guard down.

His features were guilt-ridden. His stomach clenched tighter as flashbacks of the night before continued to return into his memory.

"I just lost one of the only people left in my life, Ziva. My final act of friendship was sleeping with his god-damned girlfriend. I am not going to let you take the wrap for something that I can stop." He spoke gently but there was a roughness in his tone that left Ziva slightly shocked.

"I am sorry, Tony." She looked into his eyes, softening hers. How had she been so blind? Obviously Tony was hurting, he probably felt a thousand times more guilty than her and still, here she stood - acting as though all of this was his fault. "This was not your fault."

The corners of his mouth twitched slightly and a weak smile formed.

"How did it even…" he trailed off, leaving the unasked question in limbo. "You know what? It doesn't matter how it happened.".

Ziva was unsure of whether or not this was what she wanted to hear. She shifted uncomfortably. So many questions lost in the fog of the silence.

Her heart raced against her chest. Her diaphragm tried to squeeze out that one question but her mouth refused to let the words out.

Instead, she did what one of them always does every time they get too close to revealing a bit of themselves; she turned and left the room.

XXX

Gibbs sat in the dark bullpen, the only remaining source of light coming from his desk lamp as he read through the statements of Special agent Anthony DiNozzo and Officer Ziva David.

The two statements said more-or-less the same thing. Some sentences were identical.

'_Ziva knocked on my door at 20.00. I let her in and we talked for a few minutes…'_

Gibbs ran a hand through his silver hair and adjusted his glasses. What was he going to do? Maybe it was a one off thing but the fact that Tony and Ziva had gone behind Sean's back but bound to get in the way of their work. There was no way around this.

He needed to talk to them.

'_I left Tony's apartment at 23.30 and went home alone.'_

Was it his business? If they kept it away from work he really had no problem with it, but he knew Tony and he knew Ziva - they were not going to be able to keep it separate.

"A-hem."

Gibbs' thoughts were interrupted by the old, accented voice of Ducky. He was standing over him with a folder clutched firmly in his hands.

"Duck." He removed his glasses "What the hell are you still doing here?"

Ducky's face was drained and a solemn mask covered it.

"The FBI has released the body back to me and so I decided that, to respect Anthony I would get the autopsy done as quickly as possible."

Gibbs sat back in his chair. His eyes narrowed as though he was trying to read something in front of him.

"What did you find?"

XXX

Ziva stepped out onto her balcony into the cold air, trying to clear her head of that one continuous, agonising vision.

Every time she closed her eyes she saw it.

Heavy panting.

Lips locked.

And then his guilt-ridden face. Drained and angry.

"We should probably talk about this." His dark, disconnected voice sliced through the night air and broke Ziva's reverie. She did not flinch from her position, watching the black clouds consume the bright moon, as if it was escaping from events yet to unfold.

She opened her mouth to respond but found the correct words did not exist. She had a million things she wanted to say but all brought on that strange emotion that gnawed in the pit of her stomach, travelling like an odd combination of fire and ice up her spine.

Shame. She was too ashamed of her feelings to respond, ashamed of the fact that she, Ziva David has struggled continuously with her feelings since day one of knowing Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo and gave into them at the wrong time.

"Are you sorry it happened?" her question sliced through the air like a knife through butter. She knew that he regretted it - but she needed to know if he was sorry it happened for the same reasons as her.

"I… I don't know, Ziva." he answered honestly. "I'm sorry it happened when it did."

More silence.

"Ziva…" He said her name with such delicacy, clearly trying to claim her attention. His dark emerald eyes bore into her.

"Goodnight, Tony." She said quietly, turning to leave… Hoping to at least hold this conversation off for now.

"Ziva." Strong. Sharp. It was his turn to go down swinging.

"What, Tony? I do not know what to say to you. I am tired of pretending that everything is fine. And I am mad that the first time we did something about whatever this is between us was the worst possible moment."

His eyes darkened as the two stared at each other, the night breeze claiming the silence.

"Ziva."

"What, Tony?" she turned toward him, eyes glistening with an odd combination of frustration, angst and disappointment.

"For the past - what- five years? We've been dancing around this; sure at first it was just flirting, then we completely overstepped the line going undercover together - and that was fine for us… but now, ever since you got back from Israel and I got back from agent afloat-ing we've been too scared to share the same elevator in the chance that something would happen. We can't flirt because this is not a joke anymore." He knew how close his face was to hers and he didn't care. For the first time in his life, talking was working for him. Ziva swallowed audibly and stared into his eyes, knowing the truth in his words.

"You are wrong. Some things are inevitable. This-" he gestured between the two of them, pacing backwards until there was a fair distance between them "This was inevitable."

"It should not have happened." Ziva stared at the ground, refusing to meet his eyes.

"I know." The guilt was back - hitting him like a ton of bricks.

The two stood in the same reverent silence. All Tony wanted to do was take her in his arms and kiss her but with that thought only brought on more shame.

"What do you want, Tony?" She finally asked, staring into his dark eyes.

"What do I want?" He said with obvious cynicism, a humourless smile forming on his lips. "I want to go back to last night and stop myself from screwing over the two people closest to me."

He took a step toward her, taking in her guilt-ridden features.

"I want to talk to you about this without wanting to run."

He took another step. Her eyes slightly shocked at his open willingness to discuss his feelings.

"I want to go to Sean's house and apologise to him."

Another step. They were close now. Ziva's eyes bore into his.

"I want to feel like a horrible person."

Another step. They were mere inches apart now.

"I want to be able to do this…" He trailed off and touched his lips to her frozen ones lightly for a split second. "Without thinking about what might happen tomorrow."

His eyes met hers with burning intensity.

"I want to know what you want"

Ziva's eyes were glassy with unspilled tears. She tried to answer but could not get the words out. All were too personal to reveal and too hard to admit. Instead she leant forward and met her lips to his once more.

XXX

"Duck." Gibbs was harsh now. The knot in his gut told him with was bad news. "What did you find?"

Ducky took a deep, solemn breath. "Due to the warmth of last night and the rapid work of the wildlife around him - TOD is not what I originally hypothesised. I am afraid I was wrong."

"How wrong, Duck?" Gibbs was worried.

"Sean Williams was murdered between 23.00 and 02.00 the next morning." Ducky sighed. "That makes Ziva a suspect - and this time with no alibi."

XXX

**Hmmm. Oc, yes. But still full of Tiva-yummyness. **

**See how I spun that? As if I, ncsigirl101 could go one fanfic without some serious ANGST. Haha. **

**Good times. **

**I'll update ASAP. **

**But for now, I sleep. **

**Have a great day. Hope you are enjoying so far. **

**Xox. Mel**


	6. Of Loyalties and Doubts

**Hi everyone. Look, I'm sorry about the slow updates. I have no excuse. I'm just sorry. **

**Oh. My. God. Those spoilers actually hurt my heart a little. DiNozzo vs. Rivkin MUCH!? **

**Anyway, Today is ANZAC day, for those of you playing at home, ANZAC day is a very important date to Australians (and New Zealanders) as it marks the birth of our Nation coming together in the Battle of Gallipoli in WWI. ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.**

**Lest We Forget. **

**Xox. Mel. **

**Enjoy. **

**Chapter six: Of Loyalties and Doubts**

Tony crashed against the wall with the thud, though the force, instead of hurting him merely spurred him on. His hands wandered up Ziva's hips, over her waist until one sat underneath her breast and the other cupping her cheek.

Ziva responded by deepening the kiss and moving his hand from underneath to on top of her breast, sending chills down her spine. Finally it got too much for both of them and they almost sprinted to the bedroom, not once loosing the rhythm of the kiss - limbs entangled. Ziva was surprised to find her head resting on something soft all of a sudden - was it a pillow? She didn't care enough to find out, instead she ran her hands up his torso, feeling the light contours of his chest; all the way up his body until her fingers were entangled in his short hair.

Slowly, Tony began to push Ziva's top up her body and over her head, discarding it to a distant corner without a second thought. He took in her top half. Tan. Toned. Flawless. He took in the small scars - the ones that showed the reality of what she did. He ran his lips over them, kissing each one as though his lips would make them disappear.

Ziva let a small moan escape her lips as he kissed underneath her bra and she pulled his lips back to hers - looking forward to the night ahead.

It would be a very long road with numerous negative repercussions however for that moment they didn't care. For that moment nothing existed but them. No NCIS. No Gibbs. No Fornell. No Sean. No Mossad. No time limit. Just Tony and Ziva.

XXX

The two were woken the next morning by the shrill ringing of Ziva's cell phone. They jumped in surprise and Ziva quickly glanced at her phone.

"Gibbs." she answered, her voice thick with sleep.

The voice on the other end was gravely and soft.

"Ziva. I need you here. Now."

"Wh-"

"Tell DiNozzo I want him here too." and the line was cut off.

Ziva's stomach dropped and she glanced at her partner. This was it. They were going to have to face what happened between them.

"Time to have that talk, then?" Tony guessed solemnly, staring at the scattered items of clothing that lay on the floor.

XXX

Tony and Ziva stepped out of the elevator together, both with the same dread and fear churning in their stomachs.

"You better be damn sure, Duck." Gibbs said, clearly taking his emotions out of his friend as his two finest agents came closer to them.

"I am sorry, Jethro." He replied solemnly.

Gibbs simply nodded in response and took a few steps forward to meet Tony and Ziva. From the looks on their faces, they thought this was about something different and for a minute, Gibbs wished that was the case.

No one said anything, Gibbs could not find the words and Tony and Ziva did not really want to find them.

"You wanted to see us, Boss?" Tony finally prompted, being the first to become uncomfortable with the silence.

He did not respond, instead he turned around and headed toward the director's office, gesturing for them to follow.

They travelled the familiar trail in silence, Tony and Ziva exchanging worried glances. It was then that the two realised either of two things.

1. That this was a much bigger deal than they first 2. This was not about what they thought it was about.

The doors to the Director's office opened to reveal a very disgruntled Director Leon Vance.

Ducky tapped Tony on the shoulder lightly. "Perhaps we should wait outside for this one." He suggested, his eyes knowing.

There were about 50 responses that popped into Tony's mind at that point however, against his better judgment and will, he followed the older gentleman out of the room. The door shut ferociously like the roar of a car speeding down a deserted road, crushing the equilibrium of the still morning. This was not about what her and Tony did. She could tell that much.

"Sit, Officer David." Vance ordered softly. He did not know to trust her or not however if his hours on the phone with Eli David were any indication, she was a trustworthy agent.

Ziva resisted the urge to ask what this was about, she knew it would come out in good time; however not knowing was really effecting her. She took a seat at the end of the large conference table.

"Ziva." Gibbs began, sitting down on the nearest chair to her. "Where were you between 23.00 and 02.00 hours yesterday morning?"

Her eyes hollowed and her eyebrows scrunched together. "What?"

"Answer the question, Officer David." Vance interjected.

"At home." She was worried now, however she managed to cover it up, detaching herself from the situation. "What happened?"

"TOD was off." Gibbs noted.

She had no response, instead she just sat in silence, absorbing this new information.

"This puts you back in the line of fire." Vance noted, placing a toothpick into his mouth, something he did out of habit when he was stressed.

"I did nothing, Gibbs." Ziva plead into the eyes of her boss "I swear I did nothing"

Before Gibbs had a chance to respond the doors flew open and Fornell walked in with a mixture of frustration and jubilation on his face."I'll be judge of that." he noted, turning to Gibbs "Looks like you didn't squirm away this time after all, Jethro."

XXX

"I don't understand." Tony stated, pacing back an forth outside MTAC. He was impatiently waiting with Gibbs and Ducky for Fornell and Vance to finish with Ziva.

"She didn't do it, Anthony." Ducky cooed. It seemed to be the only thing he could say.

"They found DNA on Sean's body that ties her to the scene at the Time of Death. She has no alibi." He repeated. "There's no crazy lab-gremlin to blame it on this time."

If it were under different circumstances, perhaps Gibbs would have smirked at that comment however, at this moment he stood with a hard glare.

"She couldn't have…" Tony continued like a broken record. Usually Gibbs would have head-slapped him or stopped him by now however this time he knew that he needed the rant. He needed it out of his system "There's no motive. How could she? Murdering Sean makes no sense. Someone's going to a lot of trouble to frame her."

Finally, the doors clicked open and Tony fell silent, Ziva walked between Vance and Fornell with a grave look on her face. She was in trouble.

The three stopped in front of Tony, Gibbs and Ducky. Tony could not take his eyes off Ziva. She looked angry and guilty at the same time and nervous butterflies irrupted in his stomach.

Vance was the first to speak. "Officer David is being taken into FBI custody for the time being." Tony's face fell and his gaze dropped from her's. "Agent Gibbs, Agent DiNozzo. I want you to go home. Get some rest. I can't have you near this case."

Gibbs nodded and Tony stared angrily into Vance's eyes. This case included his partner and his best friend. There was no way he was staying out of the loop.

"I'm taking your silence as a yes. I'll keep you as informed as I can." he nodded before walking away.

Gibbs and Fornell stepped a few feet away from Tony and Ziva. Gibbs leant in slowly, warning and hardness in his eyes.

"Keep me in your loop. Tobias." He said quietly to his friend. Fornell simply nodded once - he probably owed Gibbs that much.

Tony looked away from Ziva, throwing up different situations in his mind to explain their current one. Flashbacks of the night before raced through his mind.

"Tony." Ziva finally got the courage to choke his name out. "I did nothing."

He looked deep into her deep brown eyes, taking in her sincerity

"I know." He replied and walked toward Gibbs.

Ziva's eyes welled with tears and she was led away by Fornell. For as she looked into Tony's eyes she could see what he thought.

He did not believe that she did not do this.

He was beginning to juggle the possibility that she was guilty.

XXX

**I know. Please Don't say it. **

**I've just realised how much this really sucks. **

**People -- I realise that I say this all the time and most of you just scan over it thinking that other people will respond to this but I need to know what should happen next. It's really dying here (Incase you can't tell from the slow updates). I don't mean to pressure you into reviewing (There's nothing I hate more than people who constantly nag for reviews) but I seriously need your input here. Please, Please help me because I have never not finished a fanfic before and I'll be damned if this is the first one. Please help me. **

**I can't receive IM messages, I have no idea why - I've never been able to. So if you send me something and I don't respond it's because I haven't received anything. **

**Sorry to be so horrible. **

**Have an awesome weekend. I promise the next chapter will come quicker! **

**Xox. Mel**


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